Template talk:Incomplete list/Archive 1

Archive 1

Redirections

to "expand list"

Would anyone complain if I redirect this to Template:expand list? --SPUI (talk) 01:27, 16 Feb 2005 (UTC)

I've put it on templates for deletion instead. Thryduulf 01:15, 2 Mar 2005 (UTC)

from "incomplete list"

I've redirected {{Incomplete list}} to this template, as both {{expand list}} and {{Stublist}} both redirect here as well. However, I do prefer expand list over listdev, personally. Courtland 00:22, 2005 May 31 (UTC)

Template placement

See Wikipedia:Template locations for discussion on template placement (article versus talk page). <>Who?¿? 15:41, 10 July 2005 (UTC)

Just a related note ... there is unlikely a clear consensus on which space to place this template in ... article or discussion ... though by inspection it appears that most applications of the template are in the article space. The debate on this particular class of templates is between those who feel that this is a message directly to editors vs. those who feel that the message is directed to both editors and readers. Courtland 23:30, July 18, 2005 (UTC)

Possible improvements

In the dutch language the template has a better look then the current english version. I believe we should have a similair looking template.

<!-- first a whiteline to solve a little bug -->
{| class="toccolours" style="text-align:center; width:100%; font-size:85%; clear:both; margin-top:1em;"

| This list is not complete. You are invited to click on 
'''<span class=plainlinks>[{{SERVER}}{{localurl:{{NAMESPACE}}:{{PAGENAME}}|action=edit}} edit]'''</span> to expand this list''.
| width="20" 
| [[Image:Crystal txt.png|20x20px]]
|}

This just looks nicer then the current version. Rmfloris 09:33, 7 March 2007 (UTC)

I think an icon (e.g. exclamation mark) ahead of the text would make it stand out. List pages can sometimes be 'busy' and a short string of text is liable to be 'lost'. Saga City (talk) 11:43, 18 August 2008 (UTC)

Usage note: Closed lists only

There are lists of clearly enumerable items which ought to be complete. A hypothetical "List of all US Presidents" for example, should be complete, and if it isn't, a tag like this should warn the reader not to rely on it and encourage any editor to complete it. I will refer to these lists as closed lists.

On the other hand List of legal terms or a hypothetical "List of Historical Novels" by their nature can't be expected to be complete, and certainly can't be proved complete at any specific point. This tag should be reserved for closed lists -- the sorts of list that a reader would naturally expect to be complete an even definitive, and warn when they fail of this standard. It should not be used on open-ended lists. Most categories are open-ended lists, and this template should not be used on them. DES 17:42, 18 July 2005 (UTC)

for open-ended lists, one appropriate template for labelling the lists as such is {{dynamic list}}. Courtland 23:30, July 18, 2005 (UTC)

Expand Link

Hi. I've noticed that the link 'you can help Wikipedia by expanding it' will open the edit page for the entire article. Is there someway this could be changed to open the edit page for that section to make it easier to edit? Just a thought. -- Jatkins 19:45, 12 September 2006 (UTC)

Yeah, you could subst the template, and then go back and make a second edit adjusting the edit link to point to the appropriate section. -GTBacchus^(talk) 06:02, 14 October 2006 (UTC)

See also

• Template messages: Lists
• "Expand list" talk page → Template_talk:Expand_list
• "Incomplete list" talk page → Template_talk:Incomplete_list
• "Stublist" talk page → Template_talk:Stublist

The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposal. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

The result of the debate was TEMPLATE MOVED per unopposed request. -GTBacchus^(talk) 05:40, 14 October 2006 (UTC)

Requested move

Template:Listdev → Template:Expand list – More meaningful. David Kernow (talk) 16:15, 8 October 2006 (UTC)

Survey

Add "* Support" or "* Oppose" followed by a brief explanation, then sign your opinion with ~~~~

• Support as nom. David Kernow (talk) 16:16, 8 October 2006 (UTC)
• Support. Vegaswikian 05:00, 14 October 2006 (UTC)

Discussion

Add any additional comments:

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

Add interwiki's

Could you please add an interwiki link to nl:Sjabloon:Lijstbeg - Ronaldvd 22:01, 20 November 2006 (UTC)

Done. --Sherool (talk) 19:13, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

Update per merged projects

I've merged Wikipedia:Incomplete lists to Wikipedia:WikiProject Lists (per talkpage, from inactive project to active one). Could someone update this template's link? Thanks. --Quiddity 23:29, 28 April 2007 (UTC)

Wouldn't it make more sense to target Wikipedia:WikiProject Lists#Incomplete_lists? Someone seeing "This list is incomplete" and clicking that link is probably looking for an explanation, not a welcome to a WikiProject. In fact, maybe merging was not quite the right solution... —dgies^t_c 00:16, 29 April 2007 (UTC)

Sure, a section link would work too.

The page was getting outdated, and hadn't seen activity (except reverting vandals) in two years. My mergist leanings are to blame for my boldness, especially where our help pages are concerned! I don't at all object to being reverted though, I can see how that page stands well on its own. Simplicity in any form is fine by me :) --Quiddity 04:36, 29 April 2007 (UTC)

Y Done ^demon^{[omg plz]} 06:27, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

Is this a cleanup template?

I was diggin' around, trying to find this template, and was surprised not to see it listed here: Category:List cleanup maintenance templates. Would it do any harm to add it to that cat? MrZaius^talk 22:52, 15 July 2007 (UTC)

Here's a slightly better fix: Move it to Category:List expansion request templates

That can be a subcat to both Category:List cleanup maintenance templates and the current Category:List cleanup maintenance templates. This, Template:Inc-lit Template:Inc-sport, and Template:Inc-video all actively call for expansion, makin' em cleanup templates in my book. Any objections? MrZaius^talk 22:57, 15 July 2007 (UTC)

proposal

{{editprotected}}
Should this template be changed to look more like template Template:Incomplete or Template:Expand to get a result like

--Avala 18:39, 24 September 2007 (UTC)

I'd like to see some greater input on this change. This template is included in a large number of locations and will impact a great number of pages. ---J.S (T/C/WRE) 19:24, 30 September 2007 (UTC)

I suggest to keep text message same as the current one. Like:

Thanks. Lara_bran 10:26, 1 October 2007 (UTC)

What's the point of having both of 'em? They essentially prompt the reader for the exact same sort of input and address an identical problem. What's odd is that the current wording of this template is more apt than that of {{incomplete}}, as only this uses the word incomplete and links to a page that's uniquely relevant to lists. I'd be tempted to simply copy the link over "incomplete" from here to {{incomplete}} and then redirect this there. I can't see any compelling reason to keep both. MrZaius^talk 13:12, 1 October 2007 (UTC)

This change would be quite a large one; and it could have unforeseen consequences. When editors add this template (currently), they expect a single italicized line of text. This proposal changes this to be a centered, boxed, message with color and more text. On the surface, this change seems like a very bad idea; if an editor wanted a messagebox when they added {{expandlist}}, they would've chosen one instead, God knows there are plenty. This proposal should be brought up on WP:WPR, in my opinion, before any change is made. Cheers. --MZMcBride 21:29, 1 October 2007 (UTC)

Sorry about that - I was just looking at the text above, not the actual template itself. Executing this edit request would create the situation I described above, with a ridiculous amount of overlap between the two templates, but there are no such issues with the way things currently stand. MrZaius^talk 07:03, 2 October 2007 (UTC)

 Declined - Declining the immediate edit based on the noted need for advance discussion. -- JHunterJ 02:53, 2 October 2007 (UTC)

Add interwiki

Please add [[la:Formula:Index imperfectus]]. Thanks -- Andrew Dalby 12:51, 30 September 2007 (UTC)

•  Done ---J.S (T/C/WRE) 19:22, 30 September 2007 (UTC)

Please add [[hr:Predložak:Proširi listu]]. Thanks Andrej Šalov (talk) 19:00, 8 February 2008 (UTC)

Spacing?

As used on Doors Open Toronto#Buildings participating in 2008, the template seems to have a significant amount of space above and below the line which seems unnecessary. {{main}} is a template used in similar situations (top of sections); Could we match the spacing of that template? TheHYPO (talk) 18:14, 29 May 2008 (UTC)

The proposed change is to basically a) add a colon (: spacer) to the beginning of the tag text, as well as b) nix the "notice" class from the div, because it's adding space under the tag that is unnecessary (not sure what {{main}}'s other classes do, but if someone does know, perhaps they would be usefull in this template as well. TheHYPO (talk) 06:43, 12 June 2008 (UTC)

Inter Wiki Link

Hi can someone add simple:Expand list Thanks--CPacker (talk) 06:15, 10 September 2008 (UTC)

Please add also ru:Template:list-stub. Mashiah (talk) 00:38, 24 January 2009 (UTC)

Class change

{{editprotected}} I suggest changing the class name of the DIV element to "boilerplate metadata". The current message doesn't align properly with other template messages, such as {{for}} and {{dynamic list}}. SharkD (talk) 01:02, 18 September 2008 (UTC)

I'm going to bring this up at MediaWiki:Common.css first. It seems that the notice class is the issue here - it was never updated as other classes were updated. --- RockMFR 16:25, 18 September 2008 (UTC)

Disabled the request while discussion at Common.css occurs. --MZMcBride (talk) 03:31, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

Indentation

Would it be possible to indent the template text a little more? As I noticed here, it looks untidy to have two templates with differing indentation. - Dudesleeper / Talk 01:45, 13 October 2008 (UTC)

I agree that this should be indented. Anyone else have any feedback on this? Gary King (talk) 02:18, 25 August 2009 (UTC)

Bases missing from closed installations list

Kincheloe AFB MI - closed 1977

Wurtsmith AFB MI - closed about 1990 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.87.26.180 (talk) 16:22, 11 January 2009 (UTC)

Possible improvement

The template currently places a notice similar to the following:

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it

I suggest that this notice be changed to something like the following:

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it and/or by providing supporting sources for information which it presents.

-- Boracay Bill (talk) 00:14, 24 January 2009 (UTC)

I've got a new version on the sandbox. It has a small option, which I think would be appropriate because it doesn't stand out too much. There are some examples in testcases. Let me know what you think. — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 17:14, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks. I like it. A look at Wikipedia:Template messages/Lists suggests to me that {{Dynamic list}} and {{Complete|date}} should be similarly updated. -- Boracay Bill (talk) 23:09, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

I've implemented. I've set the small version to be the default because I think this is more likely to fit in with the current usage. And I found a better image. Now, let's see if we get any complaints :) — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 14:47, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

NO this is meant to be an unintuitive unobtrusive comment it should remain as it was a simple italic line of text. I am reverting the template to that. --PBS (talk) 07:56, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Okay, let's discuss this. What do you mean by "unintuitive comment" and why do you feel that this change was not an improvememt? Personally I think that it is good practice to clearly distinguish between article content and maintenance tags such as this one, and using {{ambox}}, or its small equivalent as we did here, is the best way to make this distinction. It also brings it into line with all the other article message boxes. — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 08:07, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Typo meant "unobtrusive". I do not see this message the way that you do. I am against maintenance templates in article space (that is what talk pages are for) unless the templates carries some information that is useful for the reader. For example the {{Unreferenced}} template when placed in a references section is useful at two levels it warns the reader that not all the article is to be trusted as well as asking for editors to edit in citations. This message is similar, it tells a reader that the list is not complete (useful information) as well as asking editors to add more. I think that highlighting the information in the way that was done recently helps bring it to the notice of editors but it distracts the eye of the reader from reading about the primary information they are searching for. --PBS (talk) 20:20, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Similar templates

There currently exist three other templates similar to this one, {{expand list}}, {{Listdev}} and {{Stublist}}. Everything is currently redirected to {{Listdev}}, though I personally prefer {{expand list}}. Courtland 22:39, 2005 May 30 (UTC)

Undiscussed change

{{editprotected}}

Requesting revert to this rv to undo an undiscussed revert to the new ambox-small style. Chris Cunningham (not at work) - talk 14:18, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

Denied. First get consensus for the undiscussed change. See WP:BRD. Garion96 (talk) 14:24, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

See the section above. PBS is the only one disagreeing with the change in question, and as an involved party he shouldn't be editing protected templates to his own version without discussion. I am following BRD - he made a bold move, so it should be reverted until it's discussed. Chris Cunningham (not at work) - talk 15:10, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

No. He reverted my bold move. Discuss comes after Revert in BRD :) — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 15:14, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

I agree with Martin. We had the Bold, then the Revert, now the Discuss. :) I also don't agree with the change. It makes this tag stand out more than is needed. I see this tag as comparible to a stub tag, which luckily also is not in ambox style. Garion96 (talk) 15:35, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

But it's not comparable to a stub tag - it's comparable to {{expand-section}}, which was what the ambox-small style was written for in the first place. We should endeavour to ensure that cleanup templates, where they exist, look like cleanup templates and act like them (by having the appropriate HTML classes). Chris Cunningham (not at work) - talk 12:48, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

I agree. I think template messages should be kept to a minimum on the actual article. But if they are there, they should be clearly distinguishable from article content. And some consistency with the other message boxes is also good. — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 15:09, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Personally, I think the statement should remain in its previous short form. It's important that the actual text of in the list states that it's incomplete, rather than a message box that floats around. -- User:Docu

That obviously fails WP:NDA. For the few occasions in which we really need to point out that a list is incomplete, ambox templates are exempted from that guideline. Chris Cunningham (not at work) - talk 07:44, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Can you explain how you think it's "obvious" and when you think we "need"? -- User:Docu

You said that "It's important that the actual text of in the list states that it's incomplete". An in-article warning as to the quality of a section is a disclaimer. Thus, your statement is contradictory to the text of WP:NDA, which says that such things should be avoided except for specific warning, cleanup or temporal templates. As for when we would "need" to point out that a list is incomplete, we would hopefully do so only sparingly, as with other cleanup templates. The purpose of this template is to draw attention to an area which needs improving. Chris Cunningham (not at work) - talk 09:56, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

I can't quite follow your reasoning. Which one of the six elements from Wikipedia:General disclaimer covers the text of this template? -- User:Docu

WP:NDA applies to disclaimers in the general sense of the word, not in the pseudo-legalistic sense of the site's general content disclaimer. A statement such as "this section is incomplete" outwith a cleanup template is a disclaimer. Chris Cunningham (not at work) - talk 10:40, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

No, when the page was written, people added various general disclaimers directly in articles, through templates or text in the article, partially because general disclaimers were only being added. WP:NDA means, you can't add a text to the article "This is not advice". As such, it has no relation to this template. -- User:Docu

Chris you an I seem to disagree over what is a disclaimer, as to me whether a list is complete or not is useful information not a disclaimer (or to you is a statement that a list is complete also a disclaimer?). However I am curious to know how you justify the statement "ambox templates are exempted from that guideline". Because you are implying that if a disclaimer is placed in an ambox then it is OK to display it on the page (because for a reader of an article there is no difference in the look of an ambox placed on a page and an ambox in a template). --PBS (talk) 12:59, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

That is precisly what the introduction to WP:NDA says under the sentence: "There are a few exceptions to this:". Chris Cunningham (not at work) - talk 13:10, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

Frequent abuse, suggest counter-measures

One of the biggest weaknesses of Wikipedia at the moment is how many authors extend lists (in particular of fictional references) far beyond what is beneficial.

Unfortunately, in my subjective recollection, most uses of this tag that I have seen have been entirely inappropriate---immediately before one of these already-too-long lists. This includes the article on Billy Mays and the list of all products he has promoted (which prompted me to write this comment).

The tag instructions do mention that this tag is for more limited lists and for entries of significance (hypothetically, the seven dwarves of snow-white; but not all dwarves in fiction); however, in the light of this abuse, I urge that greater weight is put on clarifying this. Ideally, the formulation of the displayed tag-text should reflect this too, because many authors will not read further than that.

If technically possible, I would suggest a bot that estimated the size of the list following the tag and gave a warning when a particular number of items was exceeded. Here it will typically be appropriate to replace the tag with one of opposite meaning, e.g. fancruft. 94.220.255.246 (talk) 14:55, 13 August 2009 (UTC)

Indent this template

{{editprotected}}

As I had mentioned previously, I believe that this template should be indented, due to a number of reasons. First of all, it is not aesthetically pleasing to see two italicized templates placed one after the other but with different indentation lengths. The second reason is basically the same reason as to why all other italicized templates are indented: it makes the template stand out from the rest of the content, because indeed, the template should not be considered part of an article's content, but rather a road sign of sorts to indicate something to the reader that they should be made aware of. Gary King (talk) 06:22, 20 September 2009 (UTC)

Declined for now. This needs a little more input. Also, could you make a sandbox edit to show how your prefered change would look? Garion96 (talk) 08:43, 20 September 2009 (UTC)

{{editprotected}}

The sandbox is at Template:Expand list/sandbox. This is a pretty trivial change; I believe that WP:BRD applies here. This concern was brought up nearly a year ago and there hasn't been a single response besides myself, because this isn't a popular template and because it's such a trivial change. I could bring it to noticeboards like WP:VPT but I don't think it would get much of a response, if any at all; it seems excessively bureaucratic to post a notice to indent some text. Gary King (talk) 17:57, 20 September 2009 (UTC)

There has been quite some discussion on this template so it is watched. Nevertheless I did the request since it is not so major. I don't seee much point in it though, see {{stub}} for instance, which is not indented. Garion96 (talk) 18:48, 20 September 2009 (UTC)

Stub templates usually have images before them so they are essentially indented to separate themselves from surrounding text. In addition, they are placed at the bottom of articles, so there usually aren't any other indented text around them. In comparison, this template is placed at the top of lists and tables, and there are sometimes other notes such as This table is accurate as of January 1, 2009 which are indented so it does not line up with this template. Gary King (talk) 19:46, 20 September 2009 (UTC)

Changing appearance to the same as Template:Expand section

This template, Expand list, and Template:Expand section are more or less the same, with a different use. Then, why not to have the same appearance? Why to have this more similar to the stub template? As I have done with Template:Inc-video ([1]) I suggest to change the appearance of this template and its descendants to the one of Template:Expand section. --Tintero (talk) 20:40, 1 December 2009 (UTC)

This is meant to be an unobtrusive comment, it should remain as it is a simple italic line of text. The difference between this and {{Expand section}} is that expand section is (hopefully) a temporary addition and is an editorial maintenance template. This template is in many cases a permanent one, because there is no complete list available, and it function is more to warn a reader that the list is not complete than an editorial maintenance template. -- PBS (talk) 21:25, 1 December 2009 (UTC)

I see. Ok. --Tintero (talk) 23:55, 5 December 2009 (UTC)

Edit request from Vanediva, 4 April 2010

{{editprotected}}

Dear Administrator, I have found this page and expected to see more philippine movies registered.

Movies in the 70's "Drama's, Trilogies, Comedies" w/ Vic Vargas, Maureen Avavieira, Dolphy the comedian, Beth Oropesa, Francis Arnaiz and more. Can you register movies made by the above actors and actresses? Thank you.Vanediva (talk) 19:43, 4 April 2010 (UTC)

Vanediva (talk) 19:43, 4 April 2010 (UTC)

Not done: Please find the article where you saw this notice and add the film there. This message only says that a list is incomplete. The lists should be updated in the article itself. (Request closed by non-admin) --The Evil IP address (talk) 21:02, 4 April 2010 (UTC)

Edit request from 83.221.140.244, 6 May 2010

{{editprotected}} An article like List of unrecovered flight recorders (perma-link) looks wrong because of this template. The problem is the indentation that is done with the colon ':' in the beginning of the template. You must insert a new-line character at the very end of this template to prevent this problem.

83.221.140.244 (talk) 09:46, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

I tried adding the line break but for some reason that didn't stop the incorrect indentation. So I have removed the indentation for now, until we can work out the correct way to do this. Maybe a margin can be added to the div instead. — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 10:47, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

Hi Martin. It appears that beginning the lede with a link, as is done in that article above, has something to do with the incorrect lede indentation that follows this template. It seems pretty weird, and I don't know if it's something about this template or something about Wikilinks that causes it. If you precede the link with regular text, the problem goes away.

 —  Paine (Ellsworth's Climax)  12:51, 24 June 2010 (UTC)

{{editprotected}} Okay, I have figured out that the problem is with this template. Because the command at the end to add a hidden category to the article page is not within the <div></div> tags, this causes the indent-following on any article page that begins with a Wikilink. So the </div> has to be moved to after that hidden category command. I have done this in the {{Expand list/sandbox}}, so the code from that page can just be copied and pasted to the main template page. (The /doc page is included, and I've added the colon to indent the template as seen on the {{Expand list/testcases}} page.)
 —  Paine (Ellsworth's Climax)  11:11, 25 June 2010 (UTC)

 Done. Well done for working this out. — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 11:19, 25 June 2010 (UTC)

Yes, that was a gnarly problem. I see you switched the {{#ifeq... to {{cat handler.... Good call – Thank you very much!

 —  Paine (Ellsworth's Climax)  11:29, 25 June 2010 (UTC)

Message box or icon

{{Editprotected}}

Similar template {{Expand section}} has message box as well as wiki tile icon.

This template lacks both, at least icon should be added otherwise it will confuse with actual content. Edit/cleanup messages need to be separated from actual encyclopedic content. An icon should do if message box looks to be too much. Doorvery far (talk) 06:19, 7 July 2010 (UTC)

I have disabled your request for now as this will need discussing. This has been proposed several times in the past but so far no consensus has been reached (see other discussion on this page and the archive). I for one favour the clear separation between article content and cleanup messages and support this idea. — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 08:45, 7 July 2010 (UTC)

I don't. With some articles this template will be there indefinitely, it doesn't need to stand out. Besides, this template is similar to {{stub}} which also doesn't has an icon and message box. Garion96 (talk) 12:48, 7 July 2010 (UTC)

I think that's the strongest argument against boxing this template, and I agree with it. I don't think this template should be boxed since it may appear indefinitely in some articles. Gary King (talk · scripts) 15:32, 7 July 2010 (UTC)

How'bout this, without lines? That is just adding an icon at start:

---

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

---

I too dont like boxing which i made obvious in my previous suggestion comment. Stub template comes at the end of an article, not in between article content, hence doesnt need a "differentiator" after all! Doorvery far (talk) 04:43, 8 July 2010 (UTC)

Regarding stubs, the fact that they come in at the end of articles doesn't matter much IMO. Without a box, and sometimes without an icon, I find that they tend to blend in to the article. The icon that you suggest, I believe, existed before in this template and then was later removed. Again, considering the fact that this template will remain indefinitely in most articles, I don't think an image, colors, etc. should be included. Gary King (talk · scripts) 05:12, 8 July 2010 (UTC)

I agree with User:Gary King -- PBS (talk) 07:40, 8 July 2010 (UTC)

Reducing font size

Currently being in italics serves as differentiator, which i feel is not enough. You cant compare this with stub template which is at footer which hardly will have any actual article content like references, see-alsos etc. And the icon image i proposed grayscale, not color image. If you oppose icon and colors, then we can reduce font size to 0.85em?

---

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

---

That would look good both in web articles as well as printable version, and this method used in many templates. For example {{Expand section}} which i transcluded above has font size "smaller" transcluded from {{ambox}} and there {{small}}Doorvery far (talk) 10:55, 8 July 2010 (UTC)

It still doesn't look better than the current version. I don't see any need for a change. Garion96 (talk) 16:18, 8 July 2010 (UTC)

Reducing font size may not look better, but differentiates content and notices better. Italics are used in article content too, but not reduced font size. I think non-content need not look good at all. Doorvery far (talk) 04:12, 9 July 2010 (UTC)

Reduced font size still makes the text stand out a lot more than normal. I think that italics is still most effective here; if you scroll quickly through an article, you won't notice this template. If you stop and read the page, however, it quickly becomes clear that this template is separated from the rest of the article. Gary King (talk · scripts) 04:34, 9 July 2010 (UTC)

I see no good reason for this proposed change. -- PBS (talk) 04:55, 9 July 2010 (UTC)

Edit request from 124.80.126.24, 6 November 2010

{{edit protected}}

How about Sir John Stainer 1840-1901?? 124.80.126.24 (talk) 06:42, 6 November 2010 (UTC)

Not done: please be more specific about what needs to be changed. elektrikSHOOS 17:06, 6 November 2010 (UTC)

Addition of text passage

Saw this on {{Dynamic list}}, and I think it deserves repeating on this template. That template says:

This is an incomplete list, which may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by expanding it with reliably sourced entries.

This template should also have the "with reliably sourced entries" bit added to it in order to discourage unsourced listcruft and encourage strong sourcing. Little reminders like that can go a long way sometimes.

I can make this edit myself, so I'm not requesting the edit be made, but rather I'm seeing if anyone has any strong objections to making this edit. SchuminWeb (Talk) 17:58, 2 January 2011 (UTC)

I actually prefer to keep it short. Basically like Template:Stub. Garion96 (talk) 20:53, 2 January 2011 (UTC)

Edit request from Rcsprinter123, 5 April 2011

{{edit protected}} I'd like to add [[File:Generator list.jpg]] to it as a picture of a list.

Rcsprinter_{See what I've done}^{Gimme a message} 19:12, 5 April 2011 (UTC)

Not done: please establish a consensus for this alteration before using the {{edit protected}} template. —GFOLEY FOUR— 02:17, 6 April 2011 (UTC)

Edit request from , 5 October 2011

curate of St Matthews Church 1905 Arthur Edward Dawkin

122.105.234.118 (talk) 08:29, 5 October 2011 (UTC)

 Not done Not clear what article this refers to, but it doesn't refer to this template. Chris Cunningham (user:thumperward) - talk 17:45, 5 October 2011 (UTC)

Need "list may be incomplete" type tag

A "This list may be incomplete" tag seems to be needed. This could be used, for example, in lists of species in the article on the genera where it may be unknown to the editor if the list is incomplete or not but they might suspect so. Rather than this the list is incomplete and send somebody on a wild goose chase, it makes more sense just to say the list may be incomplete. Jason Quinn (talk) 05:05, 13 March 2012 (UTC)

Text big

I would like to suggest that someone make the text bigger so it would be more noseble to people 86.173.149.162 (talk) 17:05, 17 February 2013 (UTC)

Adding category

I would like to suggest that some one add a category to here so that list which needs expanding be put into the category so it is easer to find list just like template:stub does 86.173.149.162 (talk) 17:10, 17 February 2013 (UTC)

There is Category:Incomplete lists from February 2013, and other monthly categories can be found in Category:Incomplete lists. — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 20:08, 17 February 2013 (UTC)

Edit request on 3 July 2013

Marblehead Lighthouse

Sandusky, Ohio Sitting on the shores of Lake Erie, this 65 foot tower displays a flashing green light. It is also one of the oldest active light towers on the Great Lakes. 50.126.208.42 (talk) 02:04, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Not done: this is the talk page for discussing improvements to the template {{Expand list}}. Please make your request at the talk page for the article concerned. --Redrose64 (talk) 07:55, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Carvic65 (talk) 22:24, 21 November 2013 (UTC)

La Pelona 3,084 mts. Dominican Republic

Not done: this is the talk page for discussing improvements to the template {{Expand list}}. Please make your request at the talk page for the article concerned. --Redrose64 (talk) 22:30, 21 November 2013 (UTC)

Robert l.Waltz E-5 Republic of Vietnam Pleiku 69-70 DSM by General Creighton T. Abrams

198.228.200.157 (talk) 01:50, 25 June 2014 (UTC)

Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format. — {{U|Technical 13}} ^{(e • t • c)} 01:57, 25 June 2014 (UTC)

See also editor post

Is User:Omegaman1pi81f's post in Template:Expand_list#See_also supposed to be there? Lapadite (talk) 22:45, 17 November 2015 (UTC)

Found new member pin from 1910. Adrian C. Jordan lodge # 115.

How do i add? Roman 8369 (talk) 18:58, 16 April 2019 (UTC)

Missing?

{{Expand list}} is the same, the template page redirects here, shouldn't this be listed as an alternate? - wolf 16:43, 26 December 2020 (UTC)

Request to remove "you can help by expanding it"

As much as I like a good joke, this template is currently the subject of unnecessary internet ridicule with netizens poking fun at the phrase "you can help by expanding it" specifically in contexts such as "List of school massacres"[2] or "List of people burned as heretics"[3]. It's also somewhat redundant considering that it's already common knowledge that Wikipedia is WP:INCOMPLETE and the edit tab is easily accessible on the top of the article anyways. I support the existence of this template, but I suggest removing the "you can help by expanding" text, but whether it be replaced or removed entirely can be decided later.--Prisencolin (talk) 23:20, 23 May 2020 (UTC)

• Same goes for Template:Dynamic list.--Prisencolin (talk) 23:24, 23 May 2020 (UTC)
• I think the problem isn't with the last part; I believe it is that the phrasing is wrong. A more accurate wording would be "This list is not comprehensive; you can help by adding missing entries." - Incomplete implies that a completed state is reachable, which is not the case. Comprehensive, however, suggests that once enough entries are added, it should be sufficient to remove the template. Additionally, by telling the user to add missing entries, there isn't any implication of the reader doing an action that would add to the list in real life. Maybe someone can massage the way I've worded it, but I agree that current phrasing is poor. DMBradbury 01:46, 18 October 2020 (UTC)
  • Done. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 11:51, 22 November 2020 (UTC)

I like the new wording and think it's a good change (to the detriment of meme culture, but oh well) but I think linking to "reliable sources" is adding too much noise, I think you should remove it. Educating people about that shouldn't be done in this template, and the more small text on a grey background there is, the less people are going to read it. And it's not like unsourced contributions are useless or forbidden, other editors can find citations or remove unsourced information. Akeosnhaoe (talk) 23:05, 7 January 2021 (UTC)

Reverted that part pending consensus — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 08:59, 14 July 2021 (UTC)

Requesting comments on using ambox for this template

Hello,

Please check the sandbox and testcases pages for this template. I've put the template in a small article message box (Template:Ambox). I've done this for three reasons:

1. Linking to project space in what is merely a hatnote seems kind of odd to me (we do it in some other places, but mostly for getting people to project space pages from mainspace).
2. The template is supposed to be removed once it doesn't apply any more – putting it in a message box may help with this.
3. Since it's a maintenance notice, it's probably more consistent to put it in a message box, rather than it just being italic and indented text on the page.

Any comments or feedback are welcome. Thanks, DesertPipeline (talk) 09:30, 6 June 2021 (UTC)

As there have been no objections, can someone implement the changes from the sandbox? (However, I'm not sure about the latest edit I made, where I added the "Learn how and when to remove this template message" text and link. If you think it's unneeded, please feel free to omit it from the main template.) Thanks, DesertPipeline (talk) 11:07, 12 July 2021 (UTC)

If the "Learn how and when..." message is kept, I'm not sure if it should have a linebreak (<br>) or not. It currently doesn't. Whoever responds to this edit request, please let me know your thoughts. Thanks! DesertPipeline (talk) 11:11, 12 July 2021 (UTC)

I suppose it would need the use of a module, but could the template have a small question mark icon to the right of the text, which, when clicked, would display the "Learn how and when..." message on a line below the incomplete list text? I wanted to use the hidden template, but that would put the show button on a line below the text anyway. DesertPipeline (talk) 11:26, 12 July 2021 (UTC)

I like it, and I'm happy to make the change. But please be ready for opposition from editors who aren't following this page and don't like the visual change. If that happens, I will revert and let discussion continue. I personally prefer it without the removal message. (I like your ideas for collapsing that message, but I think it's a suggestion to raise at Template talk:Ambox not here.) Finally if this change sticks, then it would be better to make a proposal to change the |small=left style at the meta-template because that will keep our templates looking nice and consistent. — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 07:51, 13 July 2021 (UTC)

User:MSGJ: What I was thinking was that the "Learn how and when..." text would start hidden and be shown by clicking the information icon. Also, when you say Finally if this change sticks, then it would be better to make a proposal to change the |small=left style at the meta-template because that will keep our templates looking nice and consistent, what do you mean? It might be good to have a simple parameter to use a left-aligned box which scales to the width of the text within it; something like |small=left-variable-width maybe, or just |small=left-variable. But I think that the |small=left should display the same as it currently does, with the non-variable width. Both variable and non-variable width have their uses in my opinion.

Regarding the "learn how and when..." text in this template, I'm happy for you to implement the changes in the main template without including that text then. Thanks, DesertPipeline (talk) 10:07, 13 July 2021 (UTC)

In the past editors have fought hard to make all of our maintenance templates have a consistent look. I would not want that to be undone in any way, and so custom styling on a template is to be discouraged. Therefore, if this change sticks, I will propose that we either adapt the |small=left style to follow this, or create a new style as you suggested above. I guess you think Template:Expand section should follow this style, and there may be several others too. — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 12:01, 13 July 2021 (UTC)

User:MSGJ: Your expand section suggestion is an interesting idea! I've implemented it in its sandbox. We can continue this discussion at the expand section talk page. DesertPipeline (talk) 12:18, 13 July 2021 (UTC)

What I was trying to get at, is if you can get consensus to change the style at the meta-template then you won't need to have the same discussion on lots of template talk pages :) — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 12:21, 13 July 2021 (UTC)

User:MSGJ: Thanks for making the change! Also, on a semi-related note, over at Module talk:Message box I was having a discussion with Redrose64 about making it possible to use the left-aligned version of the message box for message box types other than ambox. Could you review it and share your thoughts? Thanks again, DesertPipeline (talk) 11:51, 13 July 2021 (UTC)

Just chiming in here to say that I'm glad to see this converted to a message box rather than a hatnote. MOS:HATNOTE provides guidance on what those are supposed to be, and unlike {{Dynamic list}} (which is a more permanent message), this doesn't fit into that role. {{u|Sdkb}} ^talk 21:02, 21 July 2021 (UTC)

Thanks Sdkb. I've opened a discussion at Template talk:Ambox#Possible redesign of small=left version about rolling out this design to other small message boxes. No one else has commented yet :( — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 21:46, 21 July 2021 (UTC)

Should all "Inc" templates in Category:Hatnote templates for lists be merged into this one?

There are thirteen templates in Category:Hatnote templates for lists which are versions of this template for specific types of articles. I think that they should be merged into this template, with parameters to choose which one to display, by default showing the template as it is right now. Thoughts? Regards, DesertPipeline (talk) 07:26, 13 August 2021 (UTC)

Addendum: The best way to achieve it would probably be by adding a {{#switch:}} between "list" and "is". If the parameter is blank, nothing is displayed. If a valid argument is passed (one of the other incomplete list names) then it shows whatever text is relevant between "list" and "is". DesertPipeline (talk) 07:31, 13 August 2021 (UTC)